Wall speedwell
Veronica arvensis
Family · Plantaginaceae · Harmless
The small blue four-petalled flower, the size of a pinhead, that fills lawns and beds in spring. You have to kneel to see it, and it is worth it: the blue is among the purest in our flora.
Fields and pasture · Town and roadside · Roadsides and waste ground · Walls and rocks
Also known ascorn speedwell
How to tell it
Blue flowers with four unequal petals, the lower one narrower, and two protruding stamens. Lower leaves heart-shaped and toothed, opposite; upper ones narrow and alternate. A flattened heart-shaped fruit, wider than tall.
What it is confused with
No dangerous lookalikes known in the Iberian Peninsula.
What it is for
No relevant use
Several speedwells were used in folk-medicine infusions without distinguishing the species, which is common in this group.
Where it occurs
Each square is an area with recorded observations of this plant. The lighter background is the set of areas where any of the entries has been observed, and serves as a reference. Note what this is not: it is not where the plant lives, it is where people record it, so trails and towns always look fuller than the mountains. Data from GBIF.
Sources
Community
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